


I need you with me

by CutesyMe



Series: I need you [2]
Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: Fluff, I guess I'll never know what I am doing here, Lashton - Freeform, M/M, Pining, Wedding, a lot of it, business ashton, malum, oh yeah
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-17
Updated: 2015-06-17
Packaged: 2018-04-04 20:36:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4152027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CutesyMe/pseuds/CutesyMe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Luke turned around to look at Ashton, seeing him being so concentrated on something made his heart flutter. Ashton looked cute, Luke decided, when he was occupied by something and had his eyebrows furrowed together and seemed to have forgotten the world around himself. Until Ashton looked up and caught Luke staring again. </p><p>(Or the one where Luke was running away although he desperately wanted to stay)</p>
            </blockquote>





	I need you with me

**Author's Note:**

> It took long enough and I hope you guys like it.
> 
> There is a special scene for kittenmichael. And a lot of malum

There are times when you get tested as a friend and in Luke's case he got tested as a best friend, to be more specific, as Calum's best friend. Luke loved his best friend in any best friend and brotherly way possible. He knew Calum was the one who always got protective over him but apparently there also  _had_  to be times when Luke needed to 'toughen' up and be protective over Calum.

How couldn't he? He had to witness how Calum's parents were trying to hook him up with a guy he didn't like. Joy and David couldn't be  _that_  evil when they found their son a gay heir of a CEO, that showed that they did care, but where exactly did they go wrong that made them arrange a marriage for their son? And how come Mali was overstepped. No one knew?

And Luke wished he could do something to help Calum. He didn't like how his usually energertic and lively friend seemed to have lost all motivation. Calum didn't notice it, didn't notice how he changed, but Luke did because he knew his best friend, and he wanted him back.

But he was powerless. He hadn't even seen that Michael Clifford yet, let alone talked to him or so. Joy and David didn't like him, didn't from the beginning on and whereas that hurt him like hell back then it only stung a little now. But that also meant that they didn't value his opinion on his best friend, their son, and that they wouldn't listen to him when he tried to talk the marriage out of them.

When Calum had told him that his date with Michael had went disastrious and that he was sure Michael would never want to see him again, he almost dared to say he was as happy as Calum about that. He had loved how Calum had become the old one. But it got worse when days later Calum called him and told him that Michael wanted to see him again. They had thought that the nightmare had ended but apparently not. The worst part of it all was that Luke didn't know how to help Calum. He just wanted to see his best friend happy. So he tried to do everything Calum asked him to, even if that meant going to one of Joy and David's snob party.

And surprisingly, Luke found himself fuming at the thought of meeting Michael. He didn't know what he would do, punching him sounded nice but then again this also wasn't Michael's fault. Luke doubted he knew that Calum's parents were somewhat forcing him into it. Luke decided he would punch Michael if he didn't want to leave Calum alone. That was a good deal.

The minute Luke entered the party, Calum saw him and went over to him. Calum's hug was tight, seeking for security and care, and Luke made sure to give him that. The glances that were thrown their way were ignored by both of them because only Calum mattered in that moment. Luke noticed the reluctance when Calum stepped back and decided not to leave Calum alone even for a second.

"You okay?" Luke asked to which Calum only nodded.

Luke followed Calum as he lead them to the terrace with some drinks in their hands Calum got them. He noticed how anxious Calum was when he did nothing else but play with the small parasol in his drink. Luke put an arm around Calum's shoulder and pulled him into his side.

Luke let his eyes wander around the room in hopes of maybe finding a funny topic to cheer Calum up with but what he found was something else. A someone with curly hair and dimples in his smile who was - oh shit, who was walking into their direction. Luke didn't know how he could freak out internally because of a cute guy right now but he was, and then he was also standing in front of them and spoke up in a chirpy voice.

"Hey, Calum."

Luke felt Calum tense under his arm, and that was the moment he realized he must be Michael Clifford, and immediately narrowed his eyes at the boy in front of him, his grip around Calum's shoulder tightening a little.

"Hey," Calum mumbled back.

After that Michael's attention turned to Luke and he greeted him with the same chirpy hey from before and Luke only responded with a nod.

"I was looking for you everywhere," Michael said, directed at Calum, and Luke wanted Michael to stop talking to him.

"Really?" Calum asked and Michael nodded.

Suddenly Calum excused himself, pressing his drink into Luke's hand, and went to the bathroom. Luke looked after him with a concerned gaze and debated whether or not he should follow his best friend. That decision was taken away from him when Michael spoke up again, this time talking to Luke.

"And who are you if I might ask?"

Luke turned his attention to Michael, feeling anger bubble inside of him. "What if I tell you you might not?"

"Just want to know if you are a friend of Calum's or if you like him in another way."

"And what if I do?" Luke knew he was walking on thin ice but he was ready to do that for Calum. If Calum sabotaged this his parents could do every kind of bad thing to him, but if  _he_  sabotaged this for Calum, Calum's parents couldn't do anything.

Michael opened his mouth to say something but something else caught Luke's attention and he averted his gaze from Michael. He saw Calum exit the bathroom, with a certain red haired he had once seen in tow, and he wondered if he should go over and ask what was going on. He was surprised, to say the least. But then Calum saw Luke and he seemed to be okay so he just let them leave, hoping that the red haired wouldn't do anything that would hurt Calum.

Michael's voice interrupted his train of thought. "Since when have you and Calum been friends?"

Luke looked at Michael as if he didn't know what he was talking about, then looked at where he had seen Calum the last time and couldn't find him, averting his gaze back to Michael again. He didn't know if Michael saw Calum leave.

"A couple years," Luke answered Michael's question. He wasn't claiming to be dating Calum but he also wasn't denying it.

"And I guess you met in school?"

"We did."

"And do you also like country music?" Michael asked.

"What?" Luke squeaked, not knowing why Michael would think that. He liked to think that his clothing style showed what kind of music he liked.

"Nothing. Forget about that. Just tell me what music you like."

"Why are we even talking? We have nothing to do with each other. I came because Calum asked me to."

"I am just trying to be nice," Michael stated, sounding irritated about Luke's question.

Luke didn't why exactly, maybe it was the fact that he was so protective of Calum right now or the one that Calum had just met the red haired again, that he wouldn't stop talking about the last days, but he felt like he had to tell Michael what Calum should be telling him. "There's no need for that. We won't meet again, and it would be great if you would tell Calum's parents that-"

"Why do you always start talking about Calum?" Michael interrupted Luke's small rant. "Can't you just forget about him a little?"

"What?" Luke's voice was full of disbelief. "How can you be so much of an asshole?" He couldn't believe that Joy and David wanted Calum to marry  _that_  person. Calum was too good for him. He deserved someone who would always think about Calum, who would always want to talk about him. 

"What of what I said makes me an asshole?" Michael asked, not quite believing himself what Luke was saying.

"Everything! Look just don't talk to me again and never ever dare talking to Calum again. Don't call him, don't call his parents, he doesn't want you. Understood?"

"The only thing I understood is that  _you_  are the one out of the two us who is acting like an asshole. I don't even know why I tried to be nice to you."

Luke huffed as Michael left, hoping he did for good and wouldn't bother Calum anymore. Even though Luke wanted to forget about it, the way of how the conversation with Michael went bothered him the whole time, Calum not being here but Michael still being here and there, talking to people, making them laugh and looking all gergous while his beautiful laugh seemed to fill Luke's ears, made it hard for him to forget it.

If they just hadn't met under these circumstances, Luke would have made a huge effort to get to know Michael. But circumstances wouldn't let that happen.  _Maybe you can make him like you and forget about Calum_ , a voice in him said, and before he could think about that he dismissed that thought, thinking that this wasn't what best friends did.  _It's not like Michael is Calum's ex,_  the voice spoke up again, but Luke wouldn't allow himself to think about that. It would just be too weird.

Luke tried to pick up conversations with other people but the fact that he didn't know anyone and in addition to that didn't get all the gossip and business talk  _and_ tried to avoid Joy and David made it hard for him. At some point he found Mali and joined her, both of them only having a small conversation because they didn't have that much to talk about. He was sure he was looking very pathetic to everyone, even Michael and that bothered him. So he drank a lot, occupying himself with the cool colours of the alcohol free cocktails and tasting a lot of them. Which of course made him use the bathroom a lot.

Luke flushed the toilet and exited the stall, going over to the sink to wash his hands. What he didn't expect was Michael exiting one of the stalls, and both of them raised their heads in sinc and made eye contact in the mirror, Luke halting his hand movements and Ashton raising his eyebrows at him.

The first one to break the eye contact was Luke, who continued washing his hands while Michael started washing his in the sink next to Luke's. The athmosphere was a thick one filled with awkward silence. Then they both proceeded to dry their hands, Luke taking his time with that, and he didn't know why but he hoped Michael would talk to him, so this time he could talk properly back.

What Luke disliked the most was that Michael thought he was an asshole, but he had to understand that he was forced to act like that given the circumstances they were in. Calum was one of the most important things to him and he wanted to protect him. Michael dried his hands and left, Luke following him sighingly. But as it seemed Michael did not only leave the bathroom but also the party without a last look towards Luke.

It didn't take long after that for Calum to appear, with wet, disheveled hair, clothes full of creases. He stood next to Luke, looking a little bothered, which of course worried him.

"What happened?" Luke asked and Calum only shook his head.

No matter how many times Luke asked Calum about everything the latter wouldn't answer. So Luke had no other choice than to stand next to Calum and watch the weird little game between him and the red haired. Even after the party ended Calum didn't want to say anything, not even what the red haired had whispered into his ear when he left. Calum asked Luke to cuddle him, so he did.

The next day Calum spilled everything to Luke that happened, and he could see in his friends eyes that he had a little hope that everything would go alright. Luke didn't know if it would be a good idea of his friend to put his hope into the red haired, who was definitely playing a weird game. He hoped that Michael would listen to what Luke told him at the party.

Apparently Michael hadn't, Luke realized when Calum told him after three days that Michael had called and invited both of them over to his office. Why on earth his office? And why did Calum always have to pull Luke with him into his mess. Luke only went for his best friend, even though he didn't want to.

He remembered that he was standing in front of Michael's office the one second and next second he was sitting with him in the canteen of his workplace, and had to digest the fact that he was  _Ashton_  and not the one who was trying to be hooked up with his best friend.

Luke had put his chin on his arms that were folded on the table, thinking about Calum and how betrayed he must feel.  _He_  could barely cope with all of that how could his best friend?

Ashton was smiling down at Luke and drinking his tea, which reminded Luke that he had a Capuccino waiting for him too. He sat straight, taking his beverage into his hand and let his gaze wander around the canteen and all the people in it.

He felt misplaced because he knew he didn't belong here. This was Michael's and Ashton's world, hell even Calum's. Just not his. He felt left out. A fear was nagging on his insides and he didn't want to think about all of this, but it was still better than to face Ashton. Luke was sure he was looking as pathetic as he was feeling.

"Are you alright?"

Luke looked up from his drink to see that Ashton was smiling at him, and he could swear that this smile could cure all the illnesses in the world. He nodded curtly and drank his Capuccino.

"Do you think they are finished by now?" Luke asked, and Ashton knew he meant Calum and Michael.

"I doubt they'll be finished anytime soon. Michael always dreamt of having sex on that table of his father," Ashton whispered giggling.

Luke felt his cheeks heat up and prayed that Ashton wouldn't notice it. From how Ashton's smile turned into a fond one Luke judged that he did but chose not to mention it. Luke had his experiences with sex but what Ashton was talking about was far more than that, and Luke knew Calum wouldn't mind that.

Luke finished his Cappuccino fast and then got up, announcing. "I should go now."

Ashton stood up with him, the smile on his face vanished. "You should? Why?"

"I was here because of Calum, that clearly went good as it seems, and now I don't have to do here anything more."

Luke took out his wallet and Ashton spoke up. "I got it covered. They only let you pay with some cards."

Luke seemed unsure of what to do, the ten dollar bill in his hand already. He thought about giving it to Ashton but then thought he didn't need that and might take it offensive, so he put his wallet back and mumbled a small  _thanks_.

"How are you going to go back? A chaffeur brought you here, right?" Ashton asked and Luke nodded. 

"I can drive you back as long as you give me directions."

Luke seemed unsure of what to say. He got up to get away from  _all this here_  and Ashton. But then again he didn't. It was getting too much to him. Furthermore the way back to Luke's was long. In a car he could get there faster.

The two stared at each other for a while until Luke felt his body respond, a yes, and the beaming smile on Ashton's face made it worth it. Ashton told Luke to go ahead and that he would join him after he paid, and so Luke did, not thinking about how he could end up regretting this.

And so Luke ended up in Ashton's fancy and expensive looking car that a broke student like him could never even afford in a dream, and the only thing he said to Ashton was the occasional 'turn right' and 'turn left' until he thought about the party and blurted out a loud "I'm sorry." Luke has always hated how awkward he was in some situations.

"Excuse me?" Ashton said, his eyes leaving the road for a moment to look at Luke.

"I mean what happened at the party. Sorry for acting like that but Calum didn't want to marry you or Michael or whoever, and you weren't getting our  _hints_. So both of us were desperate and I am so protective of Calum. It made me act like an asshole to you," Luke explained.

"It's okay. I understand it. It's the same with me and Michael. He isn't as tough as he looks like, and I'm sure he'll take good care of Calum."

Luke smiled gratefully and put his eyes on the road ahead of him again, the sight of Ashton getting a little too much. Soon he was happy that Ashton was halting the car in front of his parent's house. That was when it dawned on Luke that now Ashton knew where he lived.

"Thanks for the ride," Luke spoke up, opening the door. "And bye."

"Luke wait." Ashton put a hand on Luke's arm, startling the younger boy. "Would you mind giving me your phone number?"

For a moment Luke watched Ashton. Maybe if Ashton had asked on another occasion and not on one where Luke was nostalgic over the turn his life had taken he might have said yes. But it wasn't another occasion and Luke was still bitter because he felt like his best friend would leave him and he would end up as alone as he was before he found Calum. That thought scared him.

The logical thing to do in this situation was to make more friends, especially ones that Luke knew would also be in Calum's life but he didn't think straight. He just felt like he didn't belong to Ashton's life.

"I don't think that would be a good idea," Luke said and left, leaving a confused Ashton behind.

**~**

Luke was glad to hear how good Calum was doing with Michael, how happy he was with him and that Calum was getting to know Michael's parents and every other part of Michael's life.

Luke still got to meet Calum, his best friend always came to university and sometimes they met up in their free time, but when they met Calum mostly only talked about Michael or the things he did with Michael.

It wasn't long after that when Calum one day mentioned that Michael was a little down because Ashton left. Of course Luke asked where he went and Calum told him that he went to Perth because of some business extensions and that it wasn't clear whether or not he would come back.

Luke didn't know how he should feel about that. He was disappointed that he didn't see Ashton before he went away and wondered if Ashton had thought of meeting him. Probably not after what had happened between them. Luke decided it was of no use to keep thinking about that.

So a year went by somehow that was filled with uni, Michael and Calum fights and loneliness. Of course he still met up with Calum and also tagged along when Michael and Calum were doing something but he would always feel like a third wheel, and with only Calum as his friend he felt alone sometimes. The other friends he had didn't give him the comfort Calum did and even though he got pretty close with Michael that was still something different.

Luke was spending a night with Calum before all of their exams were going to start and that was when Calum told Luke that Ashton was back, and that this was the reason why Michael wasn't spending the night with them.

He had thought a lot about that since the last two weeks and was wondering if he might see Ashton. But thinking about this wasn't advantageous while he was trying to study for his exams, having studied for four hours wasn't feeling enough.

Luke got up to drink a glass of water when the doorbell rang. He wondered who it could be since he was the only one at home and not expecting anyone. Luke gaped at Ashton, who was wearing dark skinny jeans and a green day band t-shirt and smiling at Luke.

Ashton hadn't changed much, only his hair had gotten longer but other than that he had his usual smile on his face, the same tan and the same dimples.

Ashton was the first one to break the silence. "Hey."

"Hey."

"Don't wanna invite me in?"

"Sorry, yeah. Come in."

Luke stepped aside so Ashton could enter and went into the living room, Ashton following him.

"What are you doing here?" Luke then proceeded to ask.

"Calum third wheeled Michael and mine's guys day and soon after that I was suddenly the one who was third wheeling. I decided if Calum steals my best friend I'll steal his."

Luke didn't know how to react to that. It was difficult because he had told Ashton the last time he had seen him that he didn't want him to have his phone number, and now Ashton was standing in his living room and telling him that he would steal him from Calum. And did he mean that in a non-platonic way? Luke didn't know.

"So, what are you doing?" Ashton asked smiling after he realized that Luke wasn't going to say anything.

"Um, studying."

"Yeah? What for?"

"Literature."

"Uuuh. Your major?" Ashton asked.

"No, minor. Music is my major."

"Sounds interesting. What are you going to do with that?"

"Don't know yet." It wasn't a full lie. Luke only had a vague idea of trying it as a singer and wanting to sing his own songs. He had this idea since he was fourteen but didn't want to jump right into it.

"And I guess you want to study a little more?" Ashton asked warily.

Luke nodded and Ashton pouted at that, making Luke's heart race a little. "Please don't make me go back there," Ashton whined. "It's no fun to see your best friend and his boyfriend suck each others faces off."

Luke seemed hesitant. Not only because he wanted to study but also because he didn't even want to  _think_  about Ashton and now that same  _Ashton_  was standing in his living room and begging him to let him stay. Thoughts of Ashton begging him to do something else and he immediately stopped himself before he could think further.

"I won't distract you, I promise. And if I do then tell me so, I'll leave," Ashton added and Luke knew he wouldn't say no to Ashton from the beginning.

Ashton giggled a cheerful "yeay" when Luke nodded and followed Luke upstairs to his room. He halted at the doorstep and wasn't surprised to see All Time Low, blink-182 and Green Day posters on Luke's walls. But Ashton was surprised to see a guitar in one of the corners, even though he shouldn't be considering Luke was going to major in music.

"Can I?" Ashton asked, pointing at the guitar and Luke nodded. He wasn't sure how to feel about Ashton being in his room when he was practically a stranger.

Now it was Luke's turn to be surprised when Ashton could play without any mistakes Jasey Ray on the guitar and soon changed to another song. Luke was looking at him in awe from where he was sitting on his desk.

"What?" Ashton giggled when he saw Luke staring.

Luke shook his head. "Just didn't see you as the type to play guitar."

"Yeah, I do it in my freetime."

Ashton sat on Luke's bed while he was still messing around on Luke's guitar, and Luke found it oddly soothing to listen to Ashton. Especially when Ashton started humming too.

Luke turned around to look at Ashton, seeing him being so concentrated on something made his heart flutter. Ashton looked cute, Luke decided, when he was occupied by something and had his eyebrows furrowed together and seemed to have forgotten the world around himself. Until Ashton looked up and caught Luke staring again.

Luke felt as if he should look away but was too caught up in Ashton's eyes, the humming had stopped and the sounds of the guitar were also disappearing slowly until they stopped.

For a moment Luke and Ashton were only staring at each other until Luke felt mortified and turned around, trying to concentrate on his notes again. Ashton started playing again, this time more hesitant and not for as long as the last time.

Then Luke heard Ashton getting up from his bed but refrained from checking up on what he was doing. Only when Ashton spoke up, he turned to see that Ashton was standing next to his CD collection.

"Can I?" Ashton asked.

Luke mumbled. "Yeah."

So Luke put his eyes on his notes again but his mind was with Ashton. He knew Ashton offered to tell him when he was being distracting but he couldn't bring himself to ask Ashton to leave. Luke convinced himself he couldn't do it because it wouldn't be nice.

"Impressive collection," Ashton said after he had gone through all of Luke's CDs.

"Thanks. Took me a couple years," Luke explained.

"I almost have the same co- Sorry, I'm distracting you."

"No, I already studied so much. And I would tell you if you were keeping me from doing important stuff," Luke assured.

"Promise?"

"Promise."

That was how Luke and Ashton started talking about their favourite music artists and favourite stuff in general. Ashton made Luke laugh and Ashton made sure to one day tell Luke not to cover himself when he was laughing because he was making such beautiful sounds and also looked so beautiful while making them.

From three pm it became six pm and Luke's mum came back. Luke didn't even know how it ended with Liz asking Ashton to stay over dinner and Ashton agreeing after Luke had shrugged. There was even more laughter at the table with Liz and Andrew and soon it was eight pm and Ashton was telling everyone that he had a great time but had to leave now.

"The day was awesome. Thanks for letting me stay," Ashton was telling Luke after he had said goodbye to Luke's parents and was standing with him on the doorstep.

"You're welcome," Luke retorted smiling.

"We should do that again some time," Ashton suggested, and Luke didn't let himself think about it because he knew he would ruin it somehow.

"Yeah. We should."

Ashton's smile widened at that and he bit his lower lip, waving as he started taking steps backward and remembering that he still needed to give his number to Luke. Luke typed his phone number into Ashton's phone too because he knew he wouldn't have the guts to message Ashton first.

And he was right. Luke had his phone in his hands for he rest of the night and the following day but there was no text from Ashton and also he didn't message him. He thought if Ashton wanted to talk to him he would message him.

And in the evening Ashton eventually did. Luke was listening to music and going over his notes again when his phone vibrated next to his head and when he saw it was a text from Ashton his heart started beating faster.

**_Hey, Luke. How are you?_ **

Luke thought about what to reply with and freaked out a little before he decided to act as if he was talking to Calum.

_Hey, 'm fine. U?_

Okay. Maybe he shouldn't. He seemed as if he didn't know any grammar.

_**Great :) What are you doing?** _

_Studying_

_**Again?** _

_Yeah. Tomorrow's my last exam._

_**Want to party after that?** _

_Yeah_

**_Cool. Then see you tomorrow ;)_ **

Luke didn't know what to interpret into the winky smiley but he didn't think about it much. The smile on his face didn't even fade when he fell asleep.

The exam was difficult and halfway through he almost just gave it to the professor and went away, but then he thought about his plans tonight with Ashton and took a deep breath. He stayed till the end and solved as many questions as he could.

Luke felt relieved the second he came out of there, even though he didn't know if he had passed his exams. When he saw Calum he invited him to the night's plan too but since he still had to write an exam he declined. So it was only Ashton and him.

Luke hadn't thought about it in this way. What if it was a date? No, Ashton wouldn't do that right after Luke's exams, Luke thought. It was a friendly invitation.

So when Luke arrived home he took a small nap and woke up a little too late. He only had a half hour to shower and to get ready, and that wasn't enough at all for Luke. He was still doing his hair when Ashton arrived but this time didn't quiff it.

"I'm coming!" Luke yelled down the stairs and worked a little faster, putting on his necklace. He was hurriedly wearing a leather jacket when he ran down the stairs, and saw Ashton waiting for him.

"Hey," Luke mumbled as he was taking in Ashton's appearance. He wasn't wearing anything special, a blazer, dark shirt and dark skinny jeans, but the aura around him was pretty special.

Luke slowed down at the end of the stairs and suddenly felt insecure as Ashton let his gaze wander around his outfit. He smiled at Luke when he met his eyes again. Luke and Ashton said goodbye to Liz and Luke followed Ashton to his car.

"We'll go to the club right after I solve this one thing. Hope you don't mind," Ashton explained when he started the car.

"It's okay."

"So, how did your exam go?"

"Just did it. I guess I made it. Hope so at least," Luke said, the nervousness evident in his voice.

"I'm sure you did. Don't be nervous genious boy," Ashton assured and Luke didn't know why but he believed Ashton. He was sure he would also believe Ashton when he claimed that the sky was red.

They listened to the song on the radio silently for the rest of the ride until Ashton stopped in front of a tall building that seemed familiar to Luke.

"Where are we?" he asked as he eyed the building.

"At my office. I just have to sign a small but very important paper and then I'm back."

Luke hummed in response and felt his stomach churn. The place made him feel uncomfortable and he only wanted to disappear from here. Ashton came back ten minutes later, apologizing repeatedly and starting the car as soon as he got in.

The car ride was silent at first but this time it wasn't a comfortable silence and Ashton wondered what happened when he wasn't here.

"You okay?" Ashton asked after a while.

Luke turned around to him and nodded, although he was feeling a heavy weight in the pit of his stomach. It wasn't a comfortable one.

But soon Luke could distract himself as Ashton parked the car in front of a club that Luke had heard of but had never set a foot in. The queue was long and Luke doubted they would get in in the next half hour, but instead of waiting at the end of the queue Ashton took Luke's hand and walked up to the very front.

Ashton whispered something inaudible into the guy's ear and then they were granted access. Luke looked at Ashton with raised eyebrows when they entered the club, the music reaching Luke's ear.

"He owed me," Ashton explained when he saw Luke's questioning gaze. "It's good to have connections."

"I noticed."

They put their jackets aside and went where the music was coming from. Just like Luke had assumed this was a fancy club, with places that could be booked and VIP booths.

Ashton motioned Luke to follow him and the first thing they did was get a drink and toast for Luke's "regained freedom". Both of them took two shots to relax a little and then ordered some real drinks.

"Nice boy, Irwin," suddenly a female bartender spoke up next to them. "Grew tired of your old one?"

Luke felt his cheeks burn and was happy that it was a little dark in this club. He felt the intense gaze of the bartender and tried to make something out of her words without feeling flustered. What  _'old one'_?

Ashton laughed. "You know damn well that Michael and I aren't dating."

"Well after seeing Michael with his new accessoire and you with yours I guess I just have to believe what you're saying."

Luke didn't like how that woman was talking about him and Calum. How could she call them accessoires? And Calum was here once? Or maybe more than once?

"Shut up," Ashton said, surprising Luke. Ashton and the woman seemed to know each other pretty well but there was also something else in Ashton's look that Luke couldn't name and that made the woman smirk and leave them alone, but not after she had leaned over the bar and pressed a kiss to Ashton's cheek.

"That was Ruby." Ashton had to lean over to Luke a little so he could say into his ear without screaming. "An old school friend of Michael and I."

Luke nodded at that and accepted his drink from another bartender, following Ashton to a booth where it was a little quieter. As it turned out the two didn't have any problem to start a conversation and the more alcohol Luke drank the easier it got.

"You and Ruby seem pretty close," Luke said. He knew he wouldn't have mentioned that if it wasn't for the alcohol.

"We've been through some shit together. None of us were easy to deal with when we were in high school and we just have some memories with her. Michael already has her on her guest list for his wedding even though there isn't even a groom yet." Ashton laughed at the end part and Luke didn't ask anymore questions about that topic. It was supposed to be talked about it in a serious environment.

Ashton excused himself to the bathroom and the next thing that Luke registered was that a drink was set down in front of him and that  Ruby plopped down in his booth.

"A way of me saying sorry. Sorry," she said and Luke nodded. "Ashton's a great guy so whatever doubts you have they are based on nothing."

Before Luke can ask anything Ashton appeared again and Ruby got up.

"What is going on?" Ashton asked.

"You two are being boring by only sitting at your sorry asses and not dancing," Ruby responded.

Ruby left them alone again and soon the two dared to walk to the dance floor. It was weird at first for Luke but Ashton eased him into it and the alcohol he had in his veines helped a lot.

The next thing that Luke noticed was that a girl bumped into him, clearly drunk and not able to hold herself up, and as she fell down she tried to hold herself up on Luke's collar, ripping the first two buttons of his black shirt. A guy came up to them and apologized profusely, walking away with the girl.

"You okay?" Ashton asked, putting a hand on Luke's shoulder.

Luke nodded and saw how Ashton inhaled sharply as his gaze fell to Luke's revealed chest. The feelings that Luke got from seeing what happened were overwhelming and he had trouble breathing normally.

"Can we get some fresh air?" Luke asked, Ashton tearing his gaze away from Luke's chest. "I need to get out."

Ashton nodded at that and took his hand to lead him outside safely. They ended up in the parking lot, Luke leaning against the wall as he felt himself sobering up a little in the cold night air.

"That was fun, besides the last part," Ashton giggled and Luke's heart fluttered at that.

"Yeah, it was." Luke didn't know how Ashton ended up being this close to him.

"Are you okay?" Ashton mumbled, voice low and deep. Luke could only nod as Ashton slowly inched closer.

And suddenly Luke felt a burning desire in him and he only wanted Ashton to get  _closer_  and  _closer_ until he couldn't anymore, his hands itching to touch Ashton. As Ashton halted pretty close to Luke, Luke put his hands on Ashton's hips, Ashton's hands resting on the wall next to Luke's head.

Ashton raised his hand to Luke's face but didn't touch him yet. "Tell me if you want me to stop," he said and Luke nodded.

Luke expected Ashton to kiss him, even though his heart started beating at an abnormal pace at the thought, but Ashton pressed a closed mouthed kiss to the dip between Luke's collarbones and Luke felt like he was on fire, his grip on Ashton's hips tightening.

The close mouthed kiss turned to small, wet open mouthed kisses along Luke's neck to his jaw and to under his earlobe. Luke wanted  _more_  and while he was chanting  _Ashton AshtonAshtonAshton_  over and over in his mind, he also couldn't help but notice the little nagging feeling in the pit of his stomach.

With being back to Ashton's office all the old feelings also came back. Suddenly he remembered what kept him from doing all of this with Ashton earlier. It was a little more than a year later and Luke still felt like he didn't belong to Ashton's world. He was even more sure about this fact.

Ashton looked into his eyes and when his eyes fell to Luke's lips that was when Luke noticed he  _couldn't_  do this and the small  _"stop"_  that left his lips was rather involuntary but he still meant it.

Ashton sighed, letting his head fall to Luke's shoulder for a second and then pushed himself off of Luke, a new and understanding  smile on his face. Luke felt bad. No, he felt awful and horrible. He wanted  _this_. Wanted Ashton. But he felt like he shouldn't and he couldn't shake off that feeling.

"You good?" Ashton asked, and Luke wondered how Ashton could still care about him.

"I'm sorry, it's just-" Luke whispered and Ashton listened. "It's just that I can't."

"That's okay. You don't have to. And I'm sorry if I forced myself on to you and-"

"You didn't," Luke interrupted Ashton because he looked like he genuinely thought that.

Ashton smiled, which looked sad, and he was looking at the ground when he asked. "Can I ask why exactly you can't?"

"It's just that I feel like I don't belong to your world. I even felt like that when we were sitting in your office's canteen back then and this feeling only has gotten stronger. It just doesn't feel right," Luke explained.

Ashton nodded, again with a smile on his lips and Luke felt as if he had rejected the world by rejecting Ashton.

"Do you want to go back in or should I drop you back home?"

"Home sounds great," Luke admitted shyly.

"Home it is. You go wait at the car and I'll get our jackets."

Ashton waited for Luke's response before he went inside again to fetch their jackets and Luke wandered to Ashton's car, glad that his mind was quiet and wasn't forcing him to think about what he had done.

Ashton came back and drove Luke home, the car ride filled with silence at first but Ashton broke it. He told Luke a story about his younger brother which reminded Luke of something similar his oldest brother had done to him, and that was how they ended up talking and laughing throughout the rest of the ride.

When Ashton stopped the car in front of Luke's house neither knew what to say. Luke didn't know if he should add a 'see you soon' to his goodbye because he didn't know if Ashton  _wanted_  to see him after what happened although he would like that, but then he wasn't sure if it would be wise to see Ashton again.

That decision was taken from Luke when Ashton spoke up. "I'm going to Perth again."

Luke heart sank and he felt like he was told that he was going to die tomorrow. It just didn't feel fair.

"I guess your business is going great then over there," Luke said because he didn't know what else to say.

"Yeah. It's going better than expected."

It was quiet for a while.

"I should go inside now."

"Okay. Bye," Ashton mumbled.

"Bye." Luke left before he could say anything else and forced himself not to look back when he was walking to his door and opening it and wondering why Ashton  _wasn't driving off_.

He closed the door, leaning against it, and listened to Ashton's car noises. He heard the car start two minutes later and he could swear that his heart was ripped out of his chest when Ashton drove away. 

That was the moment when it sank in what exactly Luke had done and he felt nostalgic. The hairstyle went back to the quiff, the necklace in one of his drawers and the shirt in the back of his wardrobe.  That feeling increased when Calum told him two days later that Ashton was going to Perth that exact day and Luke didn't find it in himself to do anything else than to register that information.

Luke's days went on like nothing had happened. Instead it did, and Luke felt lonelier than ever before. He always scolded himself for feeling that way because it was his fault that he was in this situation. Luke felt like he wasn't allowed to miss Ashton because he was the one who rejected him. He had to suck it up and move on, just like Ashton did.

And that was what Luke did. He forgot - or at least tried to - all about Ashton and concentrated on what was in front of him. The more the end of college came the more he wanted to be a songwriter. The singer part wasn't as important for now, already experimenting with it a little.

Luke was there when Michael propsed to Calum in their college, and the hole he had closed so carefully was ripped open again. Of course Luke had thought about Ashton in the past months, he was also mentioned in a lot of conversation Luke had with Michael and Calum, but never once had Luke and him texted each other or Luke missed him like he had in the beginning.

Right after college he went to London, saying that he wanted to try and gain some experiences as a songwriter. His time in London was tough. No one actually wanted to work with someone who had never worked professionally on any songs or with other people but he still had a good time.

Luke was feeling lonely when he was in London but he was happy that he came out of Australia and all the nostalgic memories. To earn a little money Luke performed in some bars, which was apparently a good idea if you wanted to get noticed by some artists.

The singer who got interested in Luke wasn't singing the type of songs that Luke listened to and neither did the man write his own songs. But he had connections and lead Luke further to people that  _did_  write songs and songs Luke knew he would  _like_.

Luke wrote a lot with the new people he got to know, sometimes watched from the side and sometimes he had a say in parts of the song too. And soon Luke got offered his own contract, which also said that he had to sing his own songs since the guy who would manage him was of the opinion that his songs would get a lot more attention if he sang them.

Luke agreed, more out of need than will but he was happy about it nevertheless. He had to go through many paper work, consult a lawyer to tell him if he missed a hook and had to sign those papers. That was how Luke spent a lot of time in offices, that reminded him of Michael's. The uncomfortable feeling had settled in after that memory too but he chose to ignore it for the sake of his songs.

The first person Luke told about everything that was going on was of course Calum and then his parents. After he had finished all calls he found himself ghosting his fingers over Ashton's phone number, which he hadn't deleted yet. Luke found a strange comfort in the fact that he had his phone number even though he never used it.

Sometimes Luke would also read his conversation with Ashton, wishing he would have talked to him more than this so he had some interesting conversation to reread every now and then.

It took Luke three songs and a song about Ashton to get some popularity in the music world, which wasn't long. During this time never once did Luke go back to Australia. Of course he thought about it and missed everyone over there, especially Calum, but he didn't feel ready yet. Even though Luke loved every second of what was happening in his life he was feeling an uneasiness that bothered him a lot and kept him awake at night.

It took Luke a performance on a morning show to realize that he was ready but just didn't know it till then. It took him a question about the song he wrote about Ashton and the announcement that it was about  _'something we could have had but never did'_  that made him realize that he wanted to go home. He was homesick.

It wasn't easy to convince Luke's manager to let him go, but Luke said it would be a good public stunt to go back home and maybe get some popularity over there too. So Luke's manager agreed and let him go.

Being back home wasn't nearly as bad as Luke had always thought, besides the jetlag, but other than that he felt good with being back. Everything was familiar to him but he was different so it was bearable for Luke.

Calum freaked out the moment he saw Luke and wouldn't let him get away from his side for more than five minutes and Luke wouldn't want it any other way. Just now he realized how much he had missed everyone.

Luke felt great because he could relax a lot and help Calum with his music shop. Maybe he also made some public performances, of which he didn't know whether or not he was allowed to do them, in order to get Calum some customers. He took over some of Calum's shifts so he could go and meet Michael, who was doing great with his business, but neither he nor Calum uttered a word about Ashton. He had actually thought of maybe meeting him.

It wasn't until Calum came back one day from meeting Michael that he announced that he and Michael decided to marry soon, in like two weeks, that Luke met Ashton in a family gathering. He was overwhelmed with how Ashton looked, so full of charisma, so beautiful.

Ashton didn't notice Luke at first, he was too occupied in a conversation with Michael's grandparents and was laughing, but mid laugh his eyes wandered around the room and spotted Luke sitting at the bar.

Ashton raised his eyebrows at him and excuseed himself from Michael's grandparents, walking towards Luke. Luke watched how Ashton got closer and closer and he knew he should be freaking out but it all felt too unrealistic.

"Hey," Ashton said when he stood next to Luke.

Luke took in his voice, which was sounding as lively as ever, and that was when reality hit in and  _shit_ , this was  _real_  and  _happening_.

"Hey," Luke murmured back.

"Long time no see." Ashton took a seat next to Luke.

"You could say too long." Luke felt reckless.

Ashton looked surprised at Luke's response but ended up smiling his dimpled smile and nodded. "Yeah. You could say that. I heard about your music. Congratulations."

"Thanks. How's business going in Perth?"

So they caught up on each others life. How everything went after that night and how it was going now. The easiness in everything made Luke feel like he was on cloud nine and he knew he was in deep.

The two of them helped Calum and Michael with all kind of preparations since it was needed urgently. Two weeks weren't a long time and there was too much that needed to be done. Luke and Ashton also helped each other to fulfil the tasks their friends gave them and maybe the lingering touches and lingering looks were all worth it. There wasn't any time for anything else.

The time flew by and the next thing Luke knew was happening was him standing in a suit in front of Calum's mirror, his hair no longer quiffed but swooshed to the side, like on that night.

"Stop looking better than me on my own wedding," Calum said from the door. "I know you want Ashton to bang you but please keep it in today."

"I would kill you if you hadn't already worn your suit," Luke told him.

"No, but seriously. What is going on there?"

"Nothing so far. We only talk to each other. I can't even tell if one of us was flirting."

"Don't go all 'there's plenty fish in the sea' and just catch this one," Calum said and disppeared in the bathroom.

Luke shook his head at that and ushered everyone into the van so they could go to the hall where the wedding was held and the banquet. He could see how nervous Calum was and held his hand, squeezing it in reassurance.

When they entered the hall there were a couple guests already, Ruby being one of them, and Calum was ranting about how he didn't want to see Michael before the ceremony because it was inauspicious.

"Do you see him?" Calum asked Luke who shook his head but looked for Michael, discovering Ashton instead.

Ashton was also wearing a suit but didn't have his jacket on. He was looking stunning in that white shirt and black vest.

"Do you?" Calum asked again and Luke made a sound that was supposed to mean yes.

"How does he look?"

"Wow," Luke breathed, unable to form any other words which made Calum suspicious so he turned around.

Upon seeing that Luke was talking about Ashton, he hit him on the back of his head and said. "I didn't mean Ashton, you lovesick idiot."

"'m not lovesick," Luke muttered under his breath, rubbing the back of his head, and followed Calum into the room where the groom was supposed to wait.

A moment later someone knocked on the door and Calum hid in the bathroom, screaming that if it was Michael to tell him to leave. And indeed it was Michael but Luke only saw Ashton, who was standing behind him and now wearing his jacket.

"Where is Calum?" Michael asked, noticably giddy and nervous.

Luke tore his eyes away from Ashton and forced himself to look at Michael. "Calum doesn't wanna see you," he told him.

Michael's face fell instantly and he gaped at Luke. "What? Why? Does he not want to marry me anymore?"

"Don't be such a drama queen," Ashton told him.

"No, he's saying it'll bring bad luck if you see each other before the wedding."

"What?" Michael screeched. "He can't do that. I wanna see my groom. I didn't decide to marry him to be treated like this on the day of my wedding by my  _groom_."

Ashton was laughing at Michael's hysteria and Calum shouted from the bathroom at Michael 'to piss the fuck off because he wasn't risking ending up divorcing or whatever', and Ashton lead Michael away before he could scream something back or break down the door to the bathroom.   
It was only ten minutes into Calum being called out for the ceremony and he started freaking out over why  _he_  was supposed to walk down the aisle like the bride and that he didn't even know how he should walk. Luke told him it was already too late and that this was why you didn't plan your wedding only two weeks ahead and consulted a professional. Then he told him he could even skip over to Michael and he would still marry him which earned him a hit to his arm.

Calum was so nervous, especially when he was told to walk down the aisle, and he looked so awkward that it hurt Luke. But then Calum was standing at the altar and Luke was standing next to him, right in front of  _Ashton_  and the smile Ashton was offering him was better than the look Michael was giving Calum.

Then the ceremony started and most of the times Luke was looking at Ashton only to find him already looking at Luke. The looks Ashton was giving Luke sucked all the breath out of him and sometimes they got too much for him so he had to look away.

The vows began but Ashton's and Luke's stares didn't end. Luke caught himself thinking that it most probably would be great if he and Ashton were in their best friends shoes and a voice in his head started chanting Ashton's name all over again.

When the grooms kissed everyone laughed at how eager Michael was, Luke and Ashton clearly hearing Michael whispering to Calum how beautiful he was looking, and Luke thought he would cry.

The banquet was opened and of course the grooms had the honour of the first dance. Luke was sitting at a table watching his best friend be a smiley idiot with Michael and was being a smiley idiot himself.

"Hey."

Luke looked to his right to see Ashton taking a seat next to him and turned to him. "Hey."

"How are you?"

"Great. How couldn't I be after seeing those two being all heart eyes over each other," Luke retorted.

"Yeah, a wedding is something great. They are so done for each other."

The grooms dance ended and another song played, more people joining the dance floor. Luke looked at Ashton who was looking at the dance floor and spoke up before he would chicken out. "You wanna dance?"

Ashton looked at him with a surprised look and then giggled. "What?"

"I asked if you wanted to dance. With me."

Ashton looked at him for a second and nodded then. Standing up, Luke offered Ashton a hand, that Ashton took and they walked over to the dance floor.

Gladly it was a slow song so Luke didn't have to worry about his non-existing dance skills. He could just sway with Ashton and have a comfortable and nice conversation. Luke put his hands on Ashton shoulders because that was a lot easier for him and they just started swaying to the music, fond and bashful smiles on their lips.

"So, how is everything going to be after this?" Ashton asked.

"What do you mean?" Luke questioned, eyebrows furrowed together.

"Are you going to go back to London?"

Oh. "Most probably yeah. My manager also said something about going on tour. Won't be something big, still have to work on songs and an album but yeah."

Ashton nodded at that and changed the topic, talking about how he wanted to come back to Sydney because he wasn't really needed in Perth and everything was going fine there without him.

They danced to three songs and then Michael and Calum announced it was time to eat. Of course everyone gave their funny and embarrassing speeches. Ashton talked about the time Michael dyed his hair the first time and practically moved to Ashton's because he thought his parents would disown him. Or the moment in which Michael admitted to him that he loved Calum more than his Playstation 4 and FIFA games together.

And Luke told everyone about the moment how Calum found out he was gay right before he was going to have sex with a girl. Not a very convenient time for Calum to get to know that and for Luke to tell that story, but Calum couldn't stop him and Luke was going to use that to his advantage. It was his duty as Calum's best friend.

Even Ruby gave a small speech and told everyone about how she had caught Michael and Calum having sex in the bathroom stall in the club she was working at. Luke expected that kind of story from her. And from Michael and Calum.

Food was served and Luke was sitting with his family on a table with Ashton and his family. It was fun getting to know Ashton's family and seeing that Ashton clearly had his character traits from his mother Anne.

After the cake was cut, and Michael and Calum made a mess, the two were dancing embarrassingly on the dance floor, which Luke of course was filming so he could blackmail Calum when he felt like he had to.

What he didn't expect was Ashton asking him to dance too, which he just had to accept. So he was dancing with Ashton like an idiot and it was fun because Ashton's siblings, Lauren and Harry, were also dancing with him. It was a new but indeed very great experience to see Ashton around his family, and it only made Luke's heart swell with fondness.

After loosing track of how much time they had spent on the dance floor, Luke and Ashton went to the bar to drink something before they passed out due to dehydration and were still laughing went they sat down.

"That was awesome," Ashton laughed, sipping his drink.

"Yeah, we should totally do this more often," Luke added.

"I am free any time you are."

"Really? Even after what I did last time?" Luke was walking on thin ice, and he didn't want to destroy the peace he had with Ashton right now but he had to know where he was standing with him.

"It wasn't tragic at all what you did last time, totally understandable, but yeah. Even after what you did last time."

Luke looked at Ashton for a moment, held the eye contact easily and tried to find out how he deserved to have Ashton in his life.

"I am going to London," Luke whispered, still holding the eye contact.

"I always wanted to go there."

"What about your business?"

"Haven't had a break in too long anyway."

"I don't deserve you." Luke chose not to beat around the bush.

"Then earn me."

And the honesty in Ashton's voice and the determined look in Ashton's eyes did it for Luke. He was going to do exactly what Ashton wanted from him. Because he wanted it too. More than ever.

"I need some fresh air," Luke breathed. "You gonna join me?"

Ashton nodded at that, following Luke outside, and leaned on the wall next to Luke, who seemed to be in deep thoughts. Then he turned to Ashton, trapping him between his arms. 

"Tell me if you want me to stop," Luke whispered but not making the same mistake as Ashton did back then.

Luke didn't go for Ashton's neck or jaw. He cupped Ashton's cheeks and and pressed his lips to Ashton's. Ashton's lips were chapped and firm against Luke's, and Luke felt like he was on fire when Ashton put his hands on Luke's hips and pulled him closer.

Ashton added kerosine to the fire when he started moving his lips against Luke's and Luke wouldn't want it any other way. He pressed Ashton against the wall and himself against Ashton as close as possible. As Ashton snaked his arm around Luke's waist to his lower back, Luke put an arm around Ashton's shoulders because he wanted to feel  _more_  of Ashton and satisfy the voice that was chanting Ashton's name all over again.

The kiss that started out as innocent turned to a heated one, full of open mouths and clashing teeth but perfect nonetheless. Luke felt like he would implode, the oxygen getting dangerously less in his lungs but the heavy breath and little noises that were leaving Ashton's parted lips made him crave more and hard to satisfy that need. He himself was also breathing hard and barely getting enough air to last him a little longer.

But soon after that Luke had no choice than to stop, trying to catch his breath as he held on to Ashton as if his life depended on it. He enveloped Ashton with his arms, pressed his face into Ashton's neck and breathed in his scent because he needed it, needed the reassurance that Ashton was  _there_  although it was always Luke who had left him.

Ashton also held Luke as close to himself as their bodies allowed. The feeling of having Luke this close was overwhelming him, getting too much, to the extent he didn't know what to do but he was afraid to let go.

Luke whined, biting softly at Ashton's neck that made him rather hiss in pleasure than pain, and changed their positions so Luke was trapped between him and the wall.

"I just, I just need a second," Ashton panted as he pressed himself against Luke, trying to memorize how Luke was feeling against his body.

"I guess I need more than one," Luke whispered, making Ashton whine.

"You can't say something like that when we want to stop kissing."

"I didn't know we wanted that."

And at this point Ashton knew Luke was teasing him but he enjoyed this too much to stop it, no matter how much pain it caused him.

"Maybe we should go inside," Ashton said after their breathing had evened out and the only reminder of what they had done were their crumpled clothes.

"Yeah." Luke nodded and intertwined his hand with Ashton's.

He didn't let go off his hand when they entered the hall again, the smile on his face as big as the one Ashton had on his face.

Luke saw Calum and Michael make some obscene gestures at him, Ruby joining them too, probably their way of asking what they did and teasing them. Luke shook his head as he took a seat at the bar again, Ashton only giggling.

They spent the rest of the night together, Michael and Calum leaving a little before midnight while the rest of the people partied out. Soon after that Ashton had to leave too because Harry was practically asleep and his siblings had school the next day.

He pecked Luke's cheek as a goodbye and promised to text him, both of them ignoring the looks they were getting from their families.

Luke was dreamily looking out of the window, his mother not letting him drive because she feared he would cause an accident.

"So finally made a move," Liz spoke up after a while.

"Mum," Luke groaned, hiding his face in his hands. "I am not going to hear the end of this from Michael and Calum. Don't need that from you too."

"I was just making sure why my baby was all smiley like that."

"Please don't call me that in front of Ashton," Luke pleaded, a smile on his face.

"I am going to call you whatever I want and when I want. I didn't carry you for nine months and gave birth to you so I could hear this from you, young man."

"Yeah, yeah. I love you."

**~**

The next day, Ashton hadn't texted Luke yet and he wondered why. He wanted to be with Ashton but didn't know where he was. Surprising him to a sudden lunch date sounded great, so Luke called Michael to ask him if he knew where Ashton was.

"You know we actually didn't want to take any calls but since you're my  _husband's_  best friend you have some priviliges," was the first thing Michael said into the phone, putting stress on the word husband, and Luke was sure Michael was smiling like a fool.

"Hi, Luke. Why didn't you call me?" Luke heard Calum yell from somewhere in the background.

"Sorry to disturb you, but I only wanted to know if you knew where Ashton was."

Luke could practically hear the smug smile in Michael's voice. "Why don't you ask him yourself?"

"Wanna surprise him," Luke admitted, voice small.

"Sooo hung up, Pukey. Knew that was gonna happen. He is in my office doing my work for me,"Michael told Luke. "Now if you excuse us, we need to have our second round of morning sex as husbands." Calum laughed.

"Ew, where are your parents?"

"This is my apartment, Pukey. My parents didn't want me to let me into their house, knowing me all too well."

"And just for your information, Luke, having sex on Michael's desk isn't as uncomfortable as it seems," Calum yelled into the phone before Michael disconnected the call.

Luke wondered about what kind of friends he had and went into his room to get ready. He kept his hairstyle from last night, putting on a necklace and some fancy clothes. He didn't care that he looked like he was trying too hard. In fact, he  _wanted_  Ashton to see how hard he was trying.

He went to Michael's office, knowing all too well from his memory where it was. Luke was surprised to see that he wasn't anticipating his arrival at the building and that the only thing on his mind was seeing Ashton, admiring Ashton,  _touching_  Ashton.

Barely anyone here knew Luke, didn't want to let him in at first, especially Michael's secretary.

"I am Luke Hemmings, Calum's best friend, ex fiance and now husband of Michael, and I need to go inside there, really. I have to make up a lot of stuff that I fucked up and I want to start with that now," Luke explained.

The secretary opened her mouth but the voice Luke heard didn't belong to her.

"Luke? What are you doing here?" Ashton asked from where he was standing in the opened door to Michael's office.

"Surprise," Luke said, raising his hands a little.

Ashton giggled and let him inside, both of them sitting on the couch in the office.

"That's a very pleasant and appreciated surprise. What are you doing here?"

"I thought I could surprise you to a pre-date date and ask you out to lunch. As in now," Luke admitted, ignoring the blush that was creeping up his cheeks. The smile that made its way to Ashton face was worth it.

"That's very thoughtful of you. And I would actually love that," Ashton said.

"You finished with work?"

"With the most important yeah but I still need like five minutes. The rest Michael can do himself."

Luke nodded and waited patiently for Ashton to finish. While he was doing that he noticed how much he had changed in the last months. Luke wasn't feeling like he belonged to where he was sitting in Michael's office but he also didn't feel out of place or uncomfortable. He guessed his experience with managers and offices made him realize that those are only normal human beings too. Luke never noticed where along the lines he changed so much.

"I hope you know how to properly appreciate the fact that I called the newly wed couple to find out where you were."

"Oh my god," Ashton giggled. "How bad was it?"

"They were up to their second round of morning sex and gave us their permission to do it on Michael's desk."

Luke followed Ashton as he lead him outside and was laughing at what Luke was telling him about their best friends. The date went great and many followed soon.

**~**

Ashton kept his promise and visited Luke in London. And in Spain. And also currently in Los Angeles two years after Ashton had made his promise.

Luke gained more popularity he had thought of but never let any managers pressure him into any contracts he didn't want to have. He agreed to touring if he had to only do it for half of the year. The other half he spent with Ashton and writing songs.

Right now he was laying next to a sleeping Ashton and admiring his fiance, softly letting his finger ghost over Ashton's back.

His phone ringed, the screen showing that Michael was calling.

"Hello,"he whispered into the speaker, not wanting to wake up Ashton but also not wanting to leave the bed yet.

"How much did you two fuck that you sound this wrecked?" Calum asked shamelessly. "I thought you went over there for some songwriting stuff and not to have LA sex with your hottie."

"Shut up."

"Where did you do it so far?"

"Should I hang up?" Luke threatened.

"You can't do that," Michael interrupted. "We have an important announcement to make. Like now because we don't know for how long you two want to have sex over there."

"Do I have to wake up Ashton?"

"Duh!"

Luke sighed because his fiance looked so peaceful but he was also grateful that he now could hear his voice again, look into his beautiful eyes.

"Ashton." Luke nudged Ashton slowly, pressing a kiss to his face and then some more.

Ashton whined, a giggle escaping his lips and giving away himself. "What?" he groaned.

"Michael and Calum want to talk," Luke told him, putting their friends on speaker.

"Stop being so damn fluffy and cute. Calum and I will defend our position," Michael said.

"Get to the point or I'll make you listen to how I fuck Luke," Ashton said, earning a slap to his back from Luke.

"Ew, please."Calum spoke up. "Spare our innocence. You can get back to that after we tell you that Michael and I are getting serious about adopting a child."

"And hopefully you two dipshits know that we are forcing you to be the godparents because there is no one better for that," Michael interrupted Calum and whined shortly after that.

"I wanted to say that," Luke heard Calum say.

"Are you being serious?" Ashton asked, Luke thinking the same as him.

"Yeah," Michael said nonchalantly.

"When?" Luke asked.

"In like two weeks."

"That's great," Ashton spoke up again. "I am sure we can manage to be there for at least two days."

"Didn't expect anything else, dipshit."

The four of them talked about further stuff. Michael and Calum didn'tknow yet who they were going to adopt but most probably an infant. The relationship between Michael and Calum always made the other couple wonder about how far they wanted to go with each other.

The phone call was ended long ago and Ashton and Luke were cuddling right now, thinking about being godparents.

"You think we could do that one day?" Luke asked.

"I definitely want to," Ashton responded, Luke being more than happy with that answer.

They dropped the topic and Luke looked up at Ashton from where his head was laying on Ashton's chest. "Wanna go for lunch? Since it is too late for breakfast now."

"Yup. But do you think we can face our neigbours after the loud sex that we had last night?"

Luke laughed and said. "I don't regret a second of it."

**Author's Note:**

> So like, the first 4000 words were pretty boring, but tell me how you liked it.


End file.
